Here is another poser for you. This piece of equipment is about two feet long and five inches wide. It has a small two-tined fork on one side, a hand crank on the other, and a wheel with a leather belt which, when placed around the wooden wheel and tightened by the two knobs on threaded wooden pegs at the top, there is enough tension so the spindle with the tines will spin at a fairly high rate of speed. Attached to the apparatus is a separate, small, very sharp-edged metal tool that looks as if it would be held against whatever is being turned to shape it or peal it. We believe the operator of this mechanism would stand or kneel on the extended board to keep it from moving. Everything is made of wood except for the tines, and of course the belt and scraper. Any ideas?

One of the ladies working with me yesterday thought it was an apple parer - but we have a couple of those on display, and they are made of iron, with gears and much more complicated. This is very primative, and it could be a much earlier version, or something entirely different. Click the photo to enlarge it.

I completely forgot to take the glass insulator to try on the pegs I asked you about last week, so I'll need to remember to take one with me on the Fourth.

Bill Rossi and Fred went to St. Johnsbury this afternoon with some electronic equipment Bill needed to drop off at Byrne Electronics Service. We've had steady rain most of the day. Fred took pictures - some through the windshield, so I've put them together in a slide show for you. Slides

When they got back to Bill's Fred took some pictures of the other side of the lake and down the pond using lots of zoom. You'll notice the pontoon boat that had come unhitched. That was on this side of the lake and they went back and tied it up. Not many people around in weather like this, so it's a good thing they noticed it. If the wind had come up, there could have been some damage -- good work, men!!

I just looked out my window and the rain is coming down hard right now. At nine o'clock I logged .78 inch of rain this morning, but I think it's already filled the tube that indicates 1 inch of rain and is overflowing into the big tube, so for the first time in about a month we'll have had over an inch of rainfall. There are puddles in the walkway in our garden, but the soft earth where we haven't walked is absorbing the water very well. Everything is damp and soggy, though, and I started a small fire in the wood stove after lunch. Feels good. The last time I looked at the thermometer, it was beginning to drop from a high of around 64, and is now at 60.

I just got this message from Homer Fitts:

Hi -

Hope some of you are having decent weather. It has rained all day and looks like the same a lot this week. Hope maybe it might go right Fri., Sat., and Sun. for the weekend. ? ? ?

Guess I am on the road to feeling better. Legs weak and back aches but otherwise O.K. My cancer is in remission. I do not go back to Oncologist until July 13th. Am doing therapy in St. J. twice a week for the legs and back. Treadmill is tough but necessary. Did get to Church yesterday for the first time in three weeks.

Maybe get some groceries while in St. J. tomorrow. O.K. if I use the basket while walking ?

Happy 4th to you all,

Homer

We hope Homer continues to make good progress. Physical therapy can be tough on you for a while, but like Homer says, it's necessary to exercise and keep going. Thanks for the update, Homer.